Lockton have set up a Brexit Committee which is actively monitoring the impact of Brexit on the insurance market, specifically with a focus on the potential impact on clients as 'insureds'.
What we are doing?
Lockton is taking the following actions to support clients:
- Conducting risk assessments of what our clients' insurance needs are and how this will be delivered post exit.
- Reviewing our operating model to ensure seamless service to our European clients and UK clients' European subsidiaries.
- Tracking insurer responses and ratings agency action and updating our clients on these where relevant.
The London insurance market is taking a risk-based approach to plan and act for a 'hard' exit from the European Union (EU) in April 2019. Specific plans are unlikely to evolve until the outcomes from political negotiations become clear. However, some insurers are actively reviewing their options for future operating models, in some cases considering expanding their presence in Continental Europe. Materially, however, not much has changed in the last six months.
Update on key issues
- the cost and breadth of UK insurance cover is not expected to be directly affected in the short or medium term
- the insurance industry is continuing to lobby government to secure regulatory 'passporting' of services into and out of the UK
- In the short term, the EU data protection regime will still apply
- we anticipate likely changes to the UK insurance market after departure from the EU, but we are part of lobbying efforts to reduce the potential impact on the availablility and cost of insurance.